Toonz saddles up Zoonicorn series

The preschool brand is expanding beyond short sing-along videos by partnering on a 52 x seven-minute series, set to be delivered in 2021.

Zoonicorn is expanding to the small screen. The company behind the eponymous brandhas partnered with Indian prodco Toonz Media Group for a 52 x seven-minute preschool series, set to be delivered in 2021. Toonz will develop, co-produce and distribute the 3D/CGI-animated series worldwide, while Zoonicorn retains all licensing rights.

Zoonicorns are a mix between zebras and unicorns, and in the new series these magical creatures will visit other young animal’s dreams to help them overcome their challenges and learn socio-emotional skills.

Launched in 2015, the Zoonicorn brand has already expanded into a picture book, interactive story apps and games, plush toys and a limited-edition apparel line, which launched last fall. The brand has also branched out into short sing-along videos aimed at kids ages two to six, which were picked up by kids AVOD streamer Kidoodle.TV, Genius Brand’s OTT channel Kid Genius Cartoons, OTT channel HappyKidsTV, Splash Entertainment-owned kids channel Kabillion and American AVOD service Toon Goggles.

The new series is also part of Toonz’s ongoing efforts to expand, such as last year when it acquired an equity stake in Indian AR/VR game developer TiltLabs with plans to produce VR games for kids ages 10 and under, based around Toonz’s popular kids properties. It also doubled down on its production efforts and bought a majority stake in Irish full-service prodco Telegael, which expands its resources with a pre- and post-production facilities and a live-action studio.